Control for record supporting means



Oct. 19, 1943. G. RAMSEY CONTROL FOR RECORD SUPPORTING MEANS Filed Feb. 24, 1941 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 George Ramsey Inve tor His Attorney Oct. 19, 1 943. RAMSEY CONTROL FOR RECORD SUPPORTING MEANS Filed Feb. 24, 1941 5 Sheets- Sheet 2 George Ramsey Inventor By g M His Attorney Oct. 19, 1943. GQRAMSEY CONTROL FOR RECORD SUPPORTING MEANS s Sheets-Shet 5 Filed Feb. 24, 1941 Geogc Ramsey Inventor y His Attorney Hu l Patented Oct. 19, 1943 CONTROL FOR RECORD SUPPORTING MEANS George Ramsey, Hampton, Conn, assignor to The National Cash Register Company, Dayton, Ohio, a corporation of Maryland 4, 1941, Serial No.,380,158

Application February 2 6 Claims.

This invention pertains to record material supporting means of the front feed type in which the supporting means normally is in closed-throat position, where it retains the record material in printing position, but is shiftable to an open-throat position, where certain elements of the supporting means are moved to release the record material and form an open throat or guiding passage to permit the ready insertion and removal of said record material into and from the front of the machine. In particular, the invention is concerned with the provision of novel means to control the shifting of the record material supporting means.

In prior art machines employing the "front feed type of record material supporting means, the shifting of the supporting means to openthroat position required some form of control utilizing the movement of the supporting means to a columnar position or the location of the supporting means in a particular columnar position,

or, in lieu of these controls, some manipulative device had to be'operated to initiate a throat opening operation.

All of the prior art requirements and limitations on the control of the throat-opening operations are eliminated in applicant's novel arrangement, in which a, source of radiant energy and a detector of such energy are so located in front of the record material supporting means that a beam of radiant energy extends across the machine where the hand of the operator, in moving toward the record material to remove said material, will interrupt the beam, and a circuit inwhich the detector is included will control an operating means to cause the record material supporting means to move to open-throat position. In the instant embodiment of the invention, the source of radiant energy is a light source, and the detector is a photo-electric cell.

The novel control is particularly useful when used in connection with a record material supporting means supported by a traveling carriage, because it is in no manner dependent upon any carriage movement or position. This condition enables one or more printing operations to be is shifted to open-throat condition, regardless of the position of the traveling carriage.

Accordingly. it is clear that, when the novel control is used, the operator does not have to make any adjustments of tappets or control elements or operate any keys or manipulative devices; all that-is necessary is that the operator perform the natural operation of reaching for the record material, and the throat is opened to release the material so that it may be removed from the machine. The improved con trol, therefore, simplifies the operation of the machine by the operator, inasmuch as it requires no particular eifort on the part of the operator and no special operations of parts or sequence of operations to'be remembered by the operator.

It is, therefore, an object of this invention to provide a simplified control for causing a "front feed type of record material supporting means to be shifted.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a novel control means for shifting a record material supporting means, the operation of said control means requiring a minimum of eflort on the part of the person operating the machine.

Another object of the invention is to provide means which are rendered efiective to shift a record material supporting means to a released position when the operator reaches for the reca beam of light extending across the frontof the machine to a photo-electric control means for causing certain elements of a record material supporting means to be moved to a position to permit the removal of record material therefrom when the operator blocks the light from the control means upon reaching for the material.

Another object of this invention is to provide a 'source of light and a photo-electric cell mounted adjacent a recordmaterial supporting means, and an operating means for shifting said record material supporting means, rendered operable under control of said photo-electric cell each time a beam of light from said source of light to said photo-electric cell is interrupted.

Another object of the invention is to provide a control means for use with a "front feed" type of record material supp rting means mounted in a traveling carriage for lateral movement therewith, which control means is rendered effective to cause the shifting of the supporting means to an open-throat position in any lateral position of the carriage and at any time, merely by the operator's reaching for the record material.

Another object of the invention is to provide a source of light and a photo-electric cell mounted in such a manner adjacent a "front feed" type record material supporting mean carried by a carriage laterally shiftable on a machine, that the hand of an operator of the machine, in reaching for the record material, at any time and in any lateral position of the carriage, will break a beam of light from the light source to the photo-electrie cell, which will cause the s pporting means to be shifted to an open-throat position to allow the record material to be readily removed therefrom.

With these and incidental objects in view, the invention includes certain novel features of construction and combinations of parts, the essential elements of which are set forth in appended claims and a preferred form or embodiment of which is hereinafter described with reference to the drawings which accompany and form a part of this specification.

Of said drawings:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation, as observed from the right, showing the shifting mechanism for the 'record material supporting means and the relative positions of the parts of such mechanism when the supporting means is in closed-throat or printing position.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation, as observed from the right, showing the shifting mechanism for the record material supporting means with the various parts in the positions which they assume when the supporting means is in open-throat position.

Fig. 3 is -a sectional view through the record material supporting means, showingthe relative positions of the platen, the pressure rollers, and the guide plates when the record material supporting means is in closed-throat or printing position.

Fig. 4 i a sectional view through the record material supporting means, showing the relative Fig. 8 is a detail view showing means for shifting the lower pressure rollers.

Fig. 9 shows diagrammatically the arrangemen of the control means and the circuit for the control means.

Grimm. Dnscarrrron The "front feed" type of record material supportingmeansisusedwhere itis desiredtoinsort and remove individual record sheets into and from the front of the machine.

oneuseofthlstypeofsupportingmeansmay befoundinabankwhereanlndividualledger assaou sheet is provided for each depositor, upon which ledger sheet a record of the daily balancing of his account is printed. Under these circumstances, large numbers of ledger sheets must be inserted into and removed from the machine each day. It is necessary, therefore, that means be provided whereby the le'dger'sheets may be quickly inserted into the machine, located at the proper printing line, and, after the balancing operation 10 is completed, quickly removed from the machine withthe least amount of eifort on the part or the operator.

To accomplish this, in the present embodiment,

the record material supporting means is shiftable from closed-throat or printing position to open-throat position and vice versa and comprises a platen, pressure rollers, a work table, and guide plates mounted in a frame for shifting movement. When the supporting means is in printmg position, the platen is adjacent the printin; means, and the pressure rollers engage the ledger sheet with the platen to retain the ledger sheet against movement during a printing operation.

After the printing operation or operations have been completed and it is desired to remove the ledger sheet from the machine, the operator merely reaches for the ledger sheet, and, in so doing, his hand interrupts a beam of light. which 0 causes an operating means to function. The

operating means shifts the platen from printing position to a more accessible position and moves the pressure rollers to a position where they, togather with the platen, the work table, and the as de plates, form a throat or guide chute to make the removal of the ledger sheet very easy A new ledger sheet may then be inserted into the record material supporting means, which can then be shifted manually to printing position, and the operation can be repeated.

It will be clear from the following detailed description that this arrangement requires no setting of control elements or manipulation of control keys, nor does it require any particular effort on the part of the operator to cause the record material supporting. means to move to open-throat position.

A journal sheet and superimposed carbon paper are usually used to make a record of the transactions recorded in a plurality of the ledger sheets, and this journal sheet and carbon paper are held on the platen by sets of additional pressure rollers, which are not released by the movement of the record material supporting means to open-throat position. A manually operable member can be operated to release these pressure rollers when it is desired to remove the journal sheet from the machine.

In the instant embodiment, which shows the record material supporting means mounted in a laterally shiftable traveling carriage associated with a well-known form of accounting machine,

' the source of light and the photo-electric cell are so located that a beam of light extending from the light source to the photo-electric cell can be broken by the hand of the operator in reaching for the record material in any of the positions to which the traveling carriage may be shifted laterally. It is obvious that applicant'snovel control means can be used with a record material supporting means which has no lateral shifting movement, since the control is in no way dependent upon any lateral shifting of the supporting means. Furthermore, the 75 record, material supporting means is shown assotrated and disclosed in the United States Patents No. 2,088,717, which issued to Raymond A. Christian on April 28, 1988, and No. 2,082,090, whichissuedtoRaymondLChristian on June --ingoftheinventionwillbedescribedherein.

The various m of the accounting machine are supported by side frames and cross frames, one side frame of which is shown at in Fig. 1. At the front of the machine (Fig. 6) are the usual rows of amolmt keys- 02 and control keys 0%.

The machine is enclosed in a cabinet 04 which supports a carriage front guide rail II and a carriage rear guide rail 00. A traveling carriage,

formed with two connected side members 01 and 00 which carry the various record material supporting means, is laterally shiftable on the guide Front feed supporting means for record material The record material supporting means, which enables "front feeding" operations to take place, comprises a platen I0 (Figs. 3 and 4), lower pressure rollers II, a lower work table I2, and side guides I3 (only one shown). These parts, which are generally similar to those shown in the copending United States application serial No. 653,838, flied by Raymond A. Christian on January 27, 1933, can occupy a closed-throat position as shown in Fig. 3, where the platen I0 supports the record material in printingposition and the pressure rollers II hold the material against movement, and also can be shifted to an open-throat position. as shown in Fi 4,

where the platen I0 .is raised and the presusre rollers I! are disengaged from the platen, so that these parts, together with the lower work table 12 and the side guides I0, form-a chute or throat in which record material can readily be inserted into or removed from the front of the machine.

The various elements of the. record material supporting means are carried by a rockable frame composed of side plates 00 and iii (Figs. 1, 2, 3, aud t) connected together by tie rods 82 and 03 and a cross bar 85. Secured in the carriage side members 61 and 08 and extending across the carriage is a rod 00, upon which is pivoted a pair'of frame-supporting arms for rockably supporting the frame in the carriage. Frame-supporting arm 0| has its rear end bifurcated to engage a stud 82 in the-side plate 00 assaon 3 .clated wlthanaeeonntingmachlnabutitcouid anditsforwerdendflhook-shapedtoreeeive equaliywellhemedwithanyothermachinein aplaten-supporflngshaftILwhiehisiournaIed' whichhfrontfeedofrecordmaterialisdesired. inthesidepliatesllandflslnasimilarmanner, another rame-supportingarm (not shown) WWW. 5 lsmoimtedontherodiladiacentthesideplate W tiendprovidesameans for supportingthisside of the frame for rocking rod ll.

Themlnnerlnwhichthevarlouselementsof the record materiel supporting means are mountedintherockable framewlllnowbe described.

Theplaten I0 is supportedbytheshaft 00 retatably iournaled in the side plates 00 and ll of the rockable frame. The lower sets of pressure rollers -'II (Figs. 3, 4, 'l, and 8) are rotatably mounted on studs extending between setsof pressurerollercarryingarmslllooseonashaft l0 rockable in the side plates 00 and 0|.

Btoparmsflarecarriedbytheshaft II and are adjustably connected therewith by means of screws 00 and arms 00 pinned to the shaft. A red ill fastened in the arms 01 extends through slots MI in the pressure roller carrying arms 00 and enables the stop arms 01 to control the position of the pressure rollers II as well as their shifted from closed-throat position "to openthroat position.

Encompassing the shaft 06 is a series of torsion springs I02 (Fig. 7), one end of each of said springs I02 engaging one of the arms 00 and the other end of each spring engaging a hole in an adjustable collar I00 retained in position onshaft 00 by a set screw. With the set screws loosened, the collars I03 are rotated clockwise about shaft 00, as viewed in Fig. 8, and, through the springs I02, urge the pressure roller carrying arms I! clockwise, as viewed in Figs. 3, 4, and 8, until movement about the the lower part of the slots IOI yieldingly engage the rod I00 with the proper degree of pressure,

after which the set screws are tightened to retain the collars I00 in their set positions. As the collars I02 and the stop arms 01 are both fastened to shaft 08, the pressure caused by the ad- Justment' of the springs I02 will not be affected by the rocking of the shaft 00, and the pressure roller carrying arms 05 will move with the stop arms 01 from closed-throat position as shown in Fig. 3 to open-throat position as shown in Fig. i,

When-the lower work table '72 is in open-throat position, its forward edge moves upward to a position adjacent a line finder and guide I04 mounted in brackets I05 and I 06 secured .to the carriage side members 0? and 68 respectively, and serves to guide the record material toward the rear of the machine.

Frame-rocking mechanism The mechanism for rocking the frame in which the record material supporting means is carried is substantially the same as that shownand described in the above-mentioned application of Raymond A. Christian, Serial No. 653,838. Only the mechanism located adjacent the side plate of the frame is shown in thedrawings, because canengagethe Illinanypositionofthe carriage and can pivot the arms, as Ill, clockwise to rock the frame from closed-throat position to' open-throat position, as explained above.

The shaft It! also has fastened thereto an arm I, whichis connected by a link III to a source of power shown generally at Ill. The source of power may take any convenient form as long as it can operate the link III to rock the shaft I42 counter-clockwise when desired. It may comprise a constantly running motor, whichcan be connected to operate the link Ill, or it may consist oi a normally inoperative motor, whichis connected to the link I ang canbe set in operation each time It is desired to operate the link. It may also take the form of a spring which is latched under tension or compression and which may be utilized to operate the link I46.

Control means for the actuating means The means for controlling the actuating means assao'i'i 'tcnedtotheshafhextendsupfll'dlyllothatit the control to by establishing a beam of light instead of interrupting it.

Further, the control means and the'actuatins I Additional record material supporting means Also associated with the platen 16 (Figs. 3, 4, and 5) is a second record material supporting means to guide and hold a second form of record material which is fed from the rear of the machine. The record material is'fed from the rear of the-machine by operating the knobs I56 (Figs.

1, 2, and 6) to rotate the platen clockwise, and also by the usual line-spacing mechanism (not shown). The second record material supporting for frame-rocking mechanism is most clearly shown in Figs. 6 and 9 and will now be described. In the instant embodiment, a tube I41, carried by the accounting machine cabinet 64, has its upper and bent over, so that it is located adjacent the traveling carriage. At the upper end of the. tube I41 is an enlarged section I66 containing a source of radiant energy, which, in the instant embodiment, comprises a light source fordlrectcuit carried by a cable I5I to the source of power I66, so that the photo-electric" cell can control the operation of the link I45 by the source oi power I46.

with the light source carrying section I48 and the tube is located as shown in Fig. 1.11; is

obvious that the hand of the operator in moving toward the record material will block the beam of light from the photo-electric cell and cause the control circuit to function. This circuit, as shown in Fig. 9, may include any desirable form of amplifying means I52 and a control magnet I56, which magnet can be operable, when the beam of light is blocked from thephoto-electric cell, to cause the link I65 'to be connected to a motor if'a constantly running motor is used, or to close a motor switch if a normally inoperative motor is used.

Obvious variations can be made in the control means and the actuating means without departing from the invention. The type of radiant energy used is described as light, but the invention is not to be limited to the me of light, as other forms of radiant energy could beused together with appropriate means for detecting the beam. Inasmuch as the critical location of the source of energy and the detector is such that the beam between them can be broken under proper circumstances, these elements may be used with a record material supporting means that has no lateral travel, or,vif a; traveling carriage is used, these elements may both be carried by the carriage, or one may be carried by the carriage and one may be stationary, without departing from the purpose of the invention. It is also within the scope of the invention to cause to the side plates 60 and M, respectively, of the rockable frame, and these brackets have pivoted thereon arms I65 and I66 connected by a rod I61, which carries the sets of upper pressure rollers I51. Springs I68 and I66 are connected to the arms I65 and I66 and to the brackets I63 and I64, respectively, and urge the pressure rollers I51 into engagement with the platen 10. Also pivoted onvthe brackets I63 and I64 are arms I16 and Ill, respectively, which have fastened to their rear ends the upper work table I59 and at their front ends are connected by a spring I12 (Figs. 4 and 5), which rotatably supports the sets of lower pressure rollers I56.

The front edge'of the upper work table I59 is cutout opposite the'pressure rollers I58. Intermediate the rollers, this-edge is curved to embrace the spring I12 and form a support for this spring intermediate the arms I16 and Ill. Springsas I13 (only one shown) are fastened. to the rear end of the arms I10 and Ill and to the side plates 66 and 8I and urge the pressure .rollers I56 into, engagement with the platen 10.

The guide plates I66 are carried by the tie rod 63 and the shaft Ill and serve to guide the record material to and from the pressure rollers I51 and I56. The side guides MI and I62 are adjustably supported on the upper work table the forward ends of these arms and move the pressure rollers from engagement with theplaten. Counter-clockwise movement 0! the handle I8I causes the high points on the cams I14 and I15 to move opposite the rollers on the arms and Summer From the above description it is clear that the improved control means simplifies the operation of the machine, in that it requires no accurate setting of control elements or any special operation of the machine to cause the supporting means to shift to open-throat position. All that is required is that the operator reach for the record material and in so doing interrupt the beam of light to cause the supporting means to be shifted. Since, with any "front f type of record supporting means, the operator must remove and insert record material therein, the use of this necessary act without any additional eifort on the part of the operator also to cause the throat to open will effect a considerable saving in time and effort if many record sheets are to be handled, as in the case given above, in which daily balances are made on individual ledger sheets.

A copending application of J Willard Welker, Serial No. 380,706, filed on February 26, 1941, shows a photo-electric cell and lamp mounted adjacent a shiftable record material supporting means, as in this application, but the claimant the Welker application aredrawn to a novel form of actuating means which is not shown in the instant application.

While the form of mechanism herein shown and described is admirably adapted to fulfill the objects primarily stated, it is to be understood that it is not intended to confine the invention to the one form or embodiment herein disclosed, for it is susceptible of embodiment in various forms all coming within the scope of the claims which follow. 7

What is claimed is:

1. In a device of the class described, the combination of means for supporting record material; means to shift said supporting means from a closed-throat position, where the supporting means holds the record material in working position, to an open-throat position, where the supporting means releases the record material for removal therefrom, and vice versa; means for producing a beam of radiant energy; means to detect said beam of radiant energy; means to direct said beam of radiant energy across the normal path of the hand of the operator when reaching for said record material whereby the operator's hand will block said beam when the operator reaches for said record material; actuating means for said shifting means; and means controlled by said detecting means for causing the actuating means to be operative to actuate the shifting means when the beam of radiant energy is blocked from said detecting means by the hand of the operator reaching toward the supporting means,

2. In a recording machine, the combination of a record material supporting means for receiving record material fed thereto from the front of the machine and including a platen and cooperating pressure rollers shiftable from a closedthroat position to an open-throat position and vice versa: means for producing and directing abeamoilightacross therecordmaterialsupporting means and in frontthereof: a photoelectric cell upon which said beam of light is directed; means for shifting said record material supporting means to open-throat position; normally inoperative actuating means for said shifting means: control means for rendering said actuating means operative: and a circuit connecting the photo-electric cell and the control means so that the photo-electric cell can cause the controlmeans to render the actuating means operative each time the beam of light in front of the supporting means is blocked from the photo-electric cell, whereby the operator of the machine in performing the natural operation of reaching for the record material to remove it from the machine can, without any further effort, block the beam of light and cause the supporting means to be shifted regardless of whether or not the recording machine has been operated one or more times.

3. In a recording machine operable to make records on material inserted into and removed from the front of the machine, the combination of record material supporting means comprising elements shiftable from a closed-throat position to an open-throat position and vice versa: means mounted adjacent one end of said supporting means for producing a beam of light across and in front of the supporting means; a photo-electric cell mounted adjacent the other end of the supporting means and in the path of said beam of light; means for shifting said supporting means to open-throat position; actuating means for said shifting means; and means controlled by said photo-electric cell for controlling the actuating means to shift the supporting means' whenever the beam of light is blocked from said cell even though the recording machine has or has not been operated one or more times.

4. In a recording machine, the combination of a record material supporting means for receiving record material inserted therein and removed therefrom from the front of the machine and comprising record material enga in elements shiftable out of engagement with each other to form an open throat; a laterally shii'table carriage for carrying said supporting means: means located adjacent one end of the carriage and operable to produce a beam of light extending in front of the supporting means at any point in the lateral shifting of the carriage; a photo-electric cell located adjacent the other end of the carriage and having said beam focused thereon: means for shifting said supporting means to open-throat position; normally inoperative actuating means for said shifting means: control means for rendering the actuating means operative; and a circuit containing said photo-electric cell and said control means for enabling said photo-electric cell to render the control means effective in any position of the carriage and at any time in the operation of the machine whenhaving front feed means including a platen for receiving and holding a work sheet in front feed position relative to said platen: said front feed means being movable from a closed to open throat position and vice versa; a photoelectric moving said front feed means from a closed to an open throat position upon interruption of said beam of light.

6. In a recording machine operable to make records on record material inserted into and removed from the front of the machine, the combination of record material supporting means including elements movable from a record material retaining condition to a record material releasing condition and vice versa; means mounted adjacent one end of said supporting means for-producing a beam of radiant energy across and in front of the supporting means; detecting means mounted adjacent the other end of the supporting means and upon which said beam of radiant energy is directed; means for moving the movable elements of the supporting means to record material releasing condition; driving means operable independently of the recording machine to. actuate the moving means; and means controlled by the detecting means for controlling the operation of the driving means to cause the movable elements to be moved to record material releasing condition whenever the beam of radiant energy is blocked from the detecting means, said driving means, when controlled, being operable to cause the movable elements to be moved to record material releasing condition as often as desired regardless of whether or not the recording machine has been operated.

GEORGE RAMSEY. 

